Stock Market & Financial Investment News

FedEx slips in early trading, levels to watchThe shares are down fractionally to $151.34 in early trading. At that price next support is at $150.26. Resistance is at $151.90, yesterday's closing price.

On The Fly: Midday WrapStocks on Wall Street were lower at midday ahead of the conclusion of the Federal Reserve's latest rate setting meeting and the central bank's accompanying announcements. The averages began the session in negative territory and have been range-bound throughout the morning. The Dow was down triple digits once again, making 8 consecutive days that the blue chip index has seen a triple digit move. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the DOE petroleum inventory reports showed a 9.6M barrel rise in crude stocks in the week of March 13, versus expectations for a 4.4M build. The day's big economic news is yet to come, with the Fed's FOMC meeting announcement due at 2:00 pm EDT and Fed Chair Yellen holding a press conference a half hour later. Elsewhere, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unexpectedly defeated his main challenger in Israelís election and his Likud party appears set to capture more parliament seats. COMPANY NEWS: Shares of FedEx (FDX) slid 2.5% after the shipping giant reported earnings that beat estimates, but revenue that fell short of the consensus forecast, for its third fiscal quarter. FedEx noted that it expects to deliver "record" yearly earnings for the current fiscal year and next fiscal year as well... Oracle (ORCL) shares rose 2.5% after the company's third quarter profits matched expectations and it raised its quarterly dividend 25%. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the notable gainers was Vitesse Semiconductor (VTSS), which jumped 37% after the company agreed to be acquired for $5.28 per share in cash by Microsemi (MSCC). Also higher was Retrophin (RTRX), which rose 28% after the company said it will exercise its right to purchase from Asklepion Pharmaceuticals all worldwide rights, titles, and ownership of Cholbam after the FDA approved the drug for the treatment of pediatric and adult patients with bile acid synthesis disorders due to single enzyme defects and for patients with peroxisomal disorders. Among the noteworthy losers was Willbros Group (WG), which dropped 55% and was downgraded to Underperform at DA Davidson after announcing its earnings report will be delayed and the company is in potential non-compliance with debt covenants. Also lower following their earnings reports were Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR), which fell 15% after the company's Phase III BEACON metastatic breast cancer study missed its primary endpoint. INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was down 105.02, or 0.59%, to 17,744.06, the Nasdaq was down 12.45, or 0.25%, to 4,924.99, and the S&P 500 was down 7.69, or 0.37%, to 2,066.59.

FedEx CFO says 'not ruling out' larger buybacks, currently buying 'steadily'FedEx CFO Alan Graf said on the company's Q3 call, in response to a question about the company's balance sheet and taking on debt, that he "couldn't help" himself on taking on more debt than needed for Genco since "rates were so good" that FedEx could take advantage of what is in a sense "essentially free equity." Graf added that he is "not ruling out" further, larger buybacks, but at the moment FedEx is "steadily" buying back shares to prevent dilution.

FedEx says 400K share bought back during Q3FedEx noted on its Q3 call that it did continue its stock buyback during the quarter and bought 400,000 shares back and that it plans to continue to buyback shares to prevent dilution from compensation programs. The company said its capital plan "remains steady as she goes, with expansion at Ground continuing. Ground's "substantial" CapEx is needed to continue to build automated hubs and satellites to handle the additional traffic that the company is expecting, FedEx executives noted.

FedEx technical comments ahead of earningsThe shares have been trading in a range largely bound by $170 at the low and $180 at the high since December of last year. So well-defined is the range that the 50-day moving average has gone flat, neatly bisecting the range at $174.63. These bounds may help us better understand where the shares may move following results. A breakout above $180 on strong news or outlook would resolve this range bullishly. The life high at $183.51 would very likely be tested, opening up a run to the $185 to $190 area. When ranges resolve, they tend to exhibit strong price reactions which could easily exceed the reaction expected by straddle pricing. On neutral news, the stock may fall near the 50-day moving average. If the news is a bearish surprise, we could expect the low of the range to be tested at the $170 area. It would take a break below that range low to turn the trend to bearish. Next support in that event would be at $167.62.